'Here to serve the public'

A month and a week into his tenure as Ionia County sheriff, Dale Miller knows where his emphasis must be to accomplish what he says is the centerpiece of his philosophy of public safety.

"We're here to serve the public," said Miller, who took office Jan. 1, after his election in November 2012. He succeeds Dwain Dennis, who retired Dec. 31 after 14 years as the Ionia County sheriff.

The Ionia County Sheriff's Office currently has 57 full-time staff. Twenty-one certified officers, including the sheriff and undersheriff, cover the county, working on the road, in the jail and providing court security. The number includes a deputy who serves with the Central Michigan Enforcement Team (CMET) and three contract officers who work with Boston Township, Saranac and Orleans. The sheriff's office also encompasses the 18-member sheriff's posse and 12-member victim advocate unit. Its 25- to 30-member dive team, comprised of deputies and firefighters and first responders from Lake Odessa, Lyons-Muir, Clarksville, Belding, Portland and Ionia; and the marine patrol round out its services to the county.

Miller said one of his initial priorities is to establish a strong administration to provide service to the community with efficiency. Appointing an undersheriff with "the skills to communicate and motivate" to join his management team and work alongside him was one of his first acts. Miller appointed Charlie Noll, a 16-year veteran of the department, to serve in that capacity.

"That's a big one – (organizing) to respond to people's needs and keep the community safe so it is a good place to work, live and raise a family," he said.

As he reviews the sheriff's office chain of command, both in jail administration and uniformed services, Miller is continuing to "get a feel" for staff roles and tasks. He is finding there is a lot of duplication, he said.

"We have to accomplish what we need to, and still have proper supervision," he said. Miller has assigned Noll the job of identifying and studying duties and tasks toward a possible restructuring of operations.

Miller said he also is taking a "fresh look" at policies and practices in the sheriff's office, and plans to have audits of the agency and policies done by outside organizations to ensure the ICSO is following best practices. He plans to push more in-house training to promote professional standards, skills-building and knowledge.

"The laws change, and we have to stay on top of those changes," he said. "From a dollars-and-cents perspective, we have to prioritize this stuff. Sometimes it will be up to the staff to research and share best practices."

An area of great potential Miller sees is in the county's community corrections program, which provides services in the jail to reduce recidivism, especially with the recent hiring of a new manager, Melonie Swisher, which he is "really excited about.

"We want to provide opportunities to people who are incarcerated, then it's up to them if they want to take hold and make changes in their life," he said. "They have to change themselves. We can open the door, and they can step through. If they don't make the change, they can very well become repeat offenders and get back into the system."

Miller said he also would like to see community corrections work more closely with the specialty courts.

"The more relationships we build, the more we will accomplish everybody's goal, which is to keep the community safe and offer opportunities to correct poor behavior," he said.

Another one of Miller's priorities is to expand contacts with other law enforcement service providers to strengthen and improve communication.

"We are all limited in our resources, and we can find ways to work together to become more efficient," he said, adding that deputies, state troopers and city police already share information, but can always do more when it comes to helping each other solve crimes occurring across jurisdictions. "Crooks don't know boundaries."

"We respect that. We have to have a good relationship – we need their help and they need ours," he said. "Good communication lays the groundwork. In a county our size, it's fantastic that we have different governmental agencies working together."

Good communication with the community also is vital, as it can be a challenge to meet everyone's needs. Miller said he plans to attend more community meetings to hear citizen concerns.

"Sometimes rumors take off and facts are mis-represented, which can create more problems," he said. "Sharing information can help."

At the end of his tenure, Miller said he hopes to be known as "a fair leader who did the right things for the right reasons," and as "the leader of a professional and well-respected agency."